Ninoy Aquino International Airport
The Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Filipino: Paliparang Pandaigdig ng Ninoy Aquino) or NAIA (pronounced /ˈnaɪ.ə/), (IATA: MNL, ICAO: RPLL) '''is the airport serving the general area of Manila and its surrounding metropolitan area. Located along the border between Pasay City and Parañaque City, about seven kilometers south of Manila proper, and southwest of Makati City, NAIA is the main international gateway for travelers to the Philippines and is the hub for all Philippine airlines. It is managed by the Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA), a branch of the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC). |} '''History The original airport that served Manila, the Manila International Air Terminal, was opened in July 1937 at Nielson Field, the runways of which now form Ayala Avenue and Paseo de Roxas in Makati City. In 1948, following Philippine independence, the airport was moved to its current site adjacent to the Villamor Airbase, which was then called Nichols Field. The original structure was built on what is now the site of the present-day Terminal 2. In 1954 the airport's international runway and associated taxiway were built,7 and in 1961, the construction of a control tower and a terminal building for the use of international passengers was completed.7 In 1972, a fire caused substantial damage to the original terminal building, and a slightly smaller terminal was rebuilt in it's place the following year. This second terminal would become the country's international terminal until 1981, when a new, higher-capacity terminal, known today as Terminal 1, was built to replace it. The old international terminal would serve as Manila's Domestic Airport until another fire damaged it in May 1985. The present Terminal 1, originally named Manila International Airport, was given its present name on August 17, 1987, by virtue of Republic Act No. 6639, with the intention of honoring Benigno "Ninoy" Aquino, Jr., who was assassinated at the airport after returning to the Philippines from his self-imposed exile in the United States on August 21, 1983. Plans for a new terminal were conceived in 1989, when the Department of Transportation and Communications commissioned Aéroports de Paris to do a feasibility study to expand capacity. The recommendation was to build two new terminals, and in 1998, Terminals 2 and 3 were completed. Terminal 2 was nicknamed the "Centennial Terminal" as its completion coincided with the 100th anniversary of Philippine independence from Spain. In 1997, the government approved for the construction of Terminal 3, which was originally scheduled to be completed in 2002. After many delays caused by several technical and legal issues, the terminal became fully operational in mid-2008. Moreover, the government also aims to return services from many of the airlines which cancelled services to Manila as a result of the problems of the current Terminal 1. Terminals Terminal 1 The development of the Manila International Airport was finally approved through the promulgation of Executive Order No. 381, which authorized the airport's development. In 1973, a feasibility study/airport master plan was done by Airways Engineering Corporation through a US$29.6 million loan from the Asian Development Bank. The Detailed Engineering Design of the New Manila International Airport Development Project was done by Renardet-Sauti/Transplan/F.F. Cruz Consultant while the terminal's Detailed Architectural Design was prepared by Leandro Locsin's L.V. Locsin and Associates. In 1974, the detailed designs were adopted by the Philippine Government and was subsequently approved by the Asian Development Bank on September 18, 1975. Actual work on the terminal began during the second quarter of 1978. The terminal was completed in 1981 and had a size of 67,000 square meters with a design capacity of 4.5 million passengers per year. It currently serves all non-Philippine Airlines and non-Cebu Pacific international flights. In 1989, a Master Plan Review recommended the construction of two new terminals (NAIA 2 and NAIA 3), as well as many other facility improvements. The terminal reached capacity in 1991, when it registered a total passenger volume of 4.53 million. Since 1991, the terminal has been over capacity and has been recording an annual average growth rate of 11%.It has 18 air bridges and services 27 airlines (as of July 2006). Interestingly enough, the building does not have a Gate 8 and a Gate 13. Compared to international terminals in other Asian countries, Terminal 1 consistently ranks at the bottom, with limited and outdated facilities, poor passenger comfort, and the facility long ago exceeded its design capacity. Terminal 2 or Centennial Terminal Terminal 2 is exclusively used by Philippines Airlines (CA V3) and SkyTeam Alliance members. The terminal is the busiest of all terminals in the NAIA and is divided into two wings North and South. North Serves Domestic Flights and South International Flights. The second terminal, NAIA-2, located at the Old MIA Road, was completed in 1998 and began operations in 1999. The 75,000-square-meter terminal was originally designed by Aéroports de Paris to be a domestic terminal, but the design was later modified to accommodate international flights. It has a capacity of 2.5 million passengers per year in its international wing and 5 million in its domestic wing, it is possible to accommodate nine million passengers per year if required. The need for two more terminals was proposed by a Master Plan Review of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport that was undertaken in 1989 by Aéroports de Paris (ADP), which was facilitated through a grant from the French Government. The review cost 2.9 million French Franc and was submitted to the Philippine Government for evaluation in 1990. In 1991, the French government granted a 30 million franc soft loan to the Government of the Philippines, which was to be used to cover the Detailed Architectural and Engineering Design of the NAIA Terminal 2. ADP completed the design in 1992 and in 1994 the Japanese Government granted an 18.12 billion yen soft loan to the Philippine Government to finance 75% of the terminal's construction costs and 100% of the supervision costs. Construction of the terminal began on December 11, 1995, and was formally turned over to the government of the Philippines on December 28, 1998. South Wing: ' '''North Wing: ' Terminal 3 Cargo and Parcel Terminal The Cargo and Parcel terminal is located at the west end of Terminal 1. Manila Domestic Passenger Terminal The Domestic Terminal serves as a terminal for other Philippine airliners. '''Runways NAIA has a primary runway (3,737 m) running at 061°/241° (designated as Runway 06/24) and a secondary runway (2,258 m) running at 136°/316° (designated as Runway 13/31). On October 11, 2007, NAIA witnessed the debut of the Airbus A380 in the Philippines, after test aircraft MSN009 landed on NAIA's primary runway. The test flight proved that the A380 could be flown in existing runways in Asia, and that the primary international airport of the Philippines can support aircraft as large as the A380.20 Other Structures The airport also serves as a gateway facility of the logistics company DHL, and hosts the aircraft repair and maintenance facilities of German firm Lufthansa Technik AG, a division of Lufthansa. It is also connected to the nearby Col. Jesus Villamor Airbase served by the Philippine Airforce. Transportation Taxi service is available to NAIA from all points of Metro Manila. Also, jeepney and bus routes are available to the airport. Both forms of transportation facilities connect all three NAIA terminals as well. The airport is also accessible to the Manila Light Rail Transit System by a two-kilometer taxi ride to Baclaran station. In the future, with the extension of the existing Yellow Line, a new station, Manila International Airport station, is set to connect the airport, albeit still indirectly, to the LRT. Health Precautions 2009 Influenza A H1N1 Passengers are required to step through the foot bath, passengers with flu symptoms are asked to step aside for a medical check up and will be quarantined soon after confirmation if the person has Influenza A (H1N1) and the aircraft which the passenger has Category:Airlines